IP and Agriculture in the UK
Combine Harvester Author Brian Forbes Source Wikipedi a Creative Commons Licence Jane Lambert According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (" DEFRA" ) , some 476,000 individuals in the UK were employed or engaged in agriculture contributing £9.9 billion to the country's gross value added in 2014 (see Agriculture in the United Kingdom 2014 DEFRA and devolved administrations). Branding As most consumers purchase their food from intermediaries there are limited opportunities for farmers who supply those intermediaries to distinguish their produce from those of their competitors. The position is, of course, different if they market directly to the public through their own farm shops or other retail outlets that they control or influence. If they can build up reputation or goodwill it makes sense to register the name, logo or other sign by which they are identified in the market as a UK trade mark. If...